Religious and gender rights collide as woman denied haircut, Nov. 15

I may be wrong but I thought multiculturalism was the sharing and acceptance of our differences in a greater society. In this case we have a devout Muslim barber, Omar Mahrouk, whose beliefs include not touching a woman related by blood or marriage, and a woman, Faith McGregor, who wants a haircut. Once being told of the barber's tenets of belief, the woman was free to take her business elsewhere but chose to make a complaint to the Human Rights Tribunal. One has to ask what the agenda is in this story. I have to disagree with McGregor. She was not made to feel like a second-class citizen. She was told by the barber of the conflict with his beliefs but she made him unwelcome in his own country.

Derek Bignell, East York

Why are we supposed to continually jump through hoops whenever someone uses religion as an excuse for their actions? This barbershop is a business open to the public — all of the public. For the owner to say he's Muslim and won't cut a woman’s hair is discrimination, pure and simple. It appears that religion is still some sort of sacred cow and, unfortunately, our political masters won't dare question its validity. I hope this woman wins. “It's my religion” is a term that's way past its expiry date.